Principles of Benevolence: Build, Lead, Invest with Purpose

Inside Melinda French Gates' Multi-Billion Dollar Bet on Women | Erin Harkless Moore

What does it actually take to change who controls capital — and who benefits from it? In this episode, Ebony sits down with Erin Harkless Moore, Managing Director of Investments at Pivotal, the group of organizations founded by Melinda French Gates to advance social progress for women and families. Erin leads Pivotal's fund and direct investment strategy, backing overlooked founders and next-generation fund managers in women's health, the care economy, and financial access. Erin's path to one of the most influential investment seats in the country wasn't linear — it was intentional. From growing up in San Antonio with a deep sense of service, to cold-emailing HBS alumni from endowments and family offices, to writing her professional purpose on an index card, to landing a role she describes as "too good to be true" — this is a conversation about what happens when preparation meets clarity of vision. They go deep on what it means to "reframe the bar, not lower it" in diligence, why women's sports is a contrarian bet worth taking, how Pivotal uses philanthropy, investment, and advocacy as a single system — and what Melinda French Gates' expanded women's health commitment means for the investment landscape right now. In this episode: * The "to whom much is given" values instilled in San Antonio that still drive her today * Why Goldman Sachs was a phenomenal training ground — and why it wasn't enough * The index card exercise that helped her crystallize her professional purpose * How she cold-emailed her way into HBS alumni networks at endowments and family offices * What Cambridge Associates taught her about contrarian investing and reframing the bar * How Pivotal uses three levers — philanthropy, advocacy, and investment — simultaneously * Why the care economy is a $648 billion opportunity hiding in plain sight * The case for women's sports as an undervalued, mission-aligned investment * What AI means for women's health and care — and why embedding diversity at the start matters * What success looks like for the ecosystem, not just the portfolio Main Topics: * Erin's early influences and foundational values rooted in community service and faith * The role of internal purpose and deliberate career planning (index card exercise) * How Pivotal integrates philanthropy, policy, and investment to drive social change * Reframing the investment bar while maintaining rigor in due diligence * Strategies to support overlooked fund managers and diverse founders * The growth of women's health investments, including midlife and menopause research * Opportunities and challenges in women's sports and AI from an investment perspective * Cross-sector collaboration in social impact initiatives * Vision for a more inclusive, diverse ecosystem of entrepreneurs and investors Timestamps: (00:00) - Introduction to principles of benevolence and shaping society through purpose-driven work (02:05) - Erin's childhood and core values influencing her career path (03:15) - Lessons from Goldman Sachs and the impact of early experiences (04:11) - How business school and Cambridge Associates shaped her investment philosophy (09:08) - Creating conditions for marginalized talent to access capital (09:27) - The power of internal clarity and strategic positioning for career growth (13:56) - Erin's journey to Pivotal and her vision for impact investing (14:18) - Pivotal's mission and its integrated approach to social change (16:01) - Evolution of Pivotal's investment thesis and strategies (19:01) - Maintaining rigorous due diligence with an impact lens (25:24) - Embracing risk and big swings in impact investments (29:12) - Development of Pivotal's direct investment strategy (33:37) - Advancing women's health and addressing key gaps (44:46) - Investing in women's sports and expanding impact areas (46:17) - The influence of diversity in AI development (48:09) - Envisioning success in building an inclusive ecosystem (49:29) - Closing thoughts and legacy for future generations Resources & Links: * Pivotal Ventures [https://www.pivotal.com] * Monarch Collective — Women's Sports Fund [https://monarchcoll.com/] * Magnify Ventures — Care Economy Fund [https://magnifyventures.com] * Millie — Midwifery-Centered Maternal Health [https://www.millieclinic.com/] * Recast Capital — Emerging Manager Programming [https://recastcapital.com] * Barron's 100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance [https://www.barrons.com/women-in-finance] * Rising Families at Ohai.ai [https://ohai.ai] Connect with Erin Harkless Moore: * LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/erin-harkless-cfa/] Connect with Ebony Brown: * Instagram [https://instagram.com/principlesofbenevolence] * LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/in/ebonypope] * YouTube [https://youtube.com/@principlesofbenevolence] * principlesofbenevolence.com [https://principlesofbenevolence.com]

From Salesforce CFO To Humanitarian CEO - Amy Weaver

What does it take to walk away from one of the most powerful roles in corporate America — not because something went wrong, but because something more important was calling? Amy Weaver spent nearly twelve years at Salesforce, helping guide the company through a period of extraordinary growth as its market cap surpassed $300 billion. She made history as the first person in Fortune 500 history to go directly from Chief Legal Officer to Chief Financial Officer. Then she did something almost no one saw coming — she left to become CEO of Direct Relief, a humanitarian organization delivering over $2 billion in medical aid annually across 92 countries and all 50 states. She accepted that offer the same week USAID was defunded. This episode is about what it actually takes to pivot without starting over — to change lanes at the highest level of your career without losing the ground you've built. Amy talks about the conversation that changed everything, the philosophy that has guided every leap she's ever taken, and why kindness is one of the most underrated leadership weapons in any industry. If you've ever been told you don't fit the traditional mold — this one is for you. Key Topics Covered: * Growing up in a family of lawyers and how a heightened sense of fairness shaped everything that followed * The Hong Kong chapter — how a fellowship took her halfway around the world and taught her she could do anything * The Cravath years — going on her knees every morning to pray she wouldn't commit malpractice, and what two years of that gave her * The FaceTime call from Mark Benioff — and why "she's not on my list" became the beginning of an unprecedented career move * Bret Taylor's reframe — "you're not qualified to be the traditional CFO, but that's not what I'm looking for" * Why she almost said no — and what finally made her say yes * Kindness is not weakness — the parking lot phone call that changed how she thinks about leadership forever * Salesforce's 1-1-1 model — what it teaches every founder about building purpose into a company before you have anything to give * Accepting the Direct Relief offer the same week USAID was defunded — and why chaos was the reason to lean in, not pull back * What a 78-year-old organization that has never taken a dime of government funding can teach every leader about sustainability * The AI gap in humanitarian work — why she's worried and what she's doing about it * Year one at Direct Relief — what listening taught her that no spreadsheet ever could * Why "you can't be what you can't see" is her least favorite saying — and what she believes instead Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction to purpose and benevolence in leadership 00:36 - Amy Weaver's childhood ambitions and family influence 01:10 - Early career at Salesforce and leadership during rapid growth 02:07 - Transition from law to Silicon Valley and risk-taking mindset 04:48 - Lessons from Cravath and international experiences in Hong Kong 06:37 - Embracing risk and the power of leaps of faith 10:48 - Moving from legal to CFO at Salesforce - an unprecedented shift 11:09 - The story behind Amy's surprise CFO nomination 13:04 - Overcoming self-doubt with strategic mentorship and thinking creatively 16:38 - Leadership through kindness vs. loud or aggressive styles 18:18 - Breaking stereotypes: kindness as strength in leadership 24:15 - Embedding benevolence in corporate culture with Salesforce's 1:1:1 program 27:15 - Amy's decision to lead Direct Relief during upheaval in global aid 28:17 - The impact of recent U.S. government funding cuts on nonprofits 30:57 - Scaling strategies: from Silicon Valley to humanitarian aid 32:44 - The importance of cross-sector mobility and skill transfer 34:56 - Integrating cutting-edge technology and AI into humanitarian work 37:10 - Lessons from one year at Direct Relief about listening and impact-driven leadership 42:34 - The significance of representation and role models for future leaders 44:35 - Final words on seizing opportunities and leaping in faith Resources & Links: * Direct Relief [https://www.directrelief.org] * Direct Relief Hope Ahead Newsletter [https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/direct-relief-hope-ahead-7356404130849939456/] * Salesforce 1-1-1 Model [https://www.salesforce.org/pledge-1/] * Principles of Benevolence [https://principlesofbenevolence.com] Connect with Amy Weaver: * LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-weaver-b800762/]

The 120 Year Wealth Blueprint wth Ryan L. Smith

What if the most powerful wealth-building tool in the Black community has been hiding in plain sight for 120 years? Ryan L. Smith grew up on the South Side of Chicago where he felt safe inside his home but couldn't walk a block in any direction without encountering disinvestment, lack of opportunity, and gun violence. He watched friends whose lives took a very different path and made a decision early: the most scalable way to change things is through business. That conviction took him from Howard University to Morgan Stanley, through private equity and venture capital in Silicon Valley, to becoming Director of Investments at Magic Johnson Enterprises — where he helped execute one of the most storied acquisition strategies in Black business history. That journey led him somewhere he never anticipated: insurance. Today Ryan serves as Executive Vice President and Board Director of Atlanta Life Insurance Company, founded in 1905 by Alonzo Herndon — a man born into slavery who became the first Black millionaire in the South — and one of the oldest and most consequential Black-owned institutions in America. This episode is about a 120-year blueprint that never went out of style. The wealth-building tools the wealthy have always used. And why the Black community has been sleeping on all of it. Key Topics Covered: * Growing up on the South Side of Chicago and deciding business was the most scalable solution to systemic disinvestment * How Carla Harris changed everything with one breakfast and one piece of advice about earrings * How Ryan created an opportunity at Magic Johnson Enterprises that had no job posting — and why recommending against the first deal was the move that built trust * The story of Alonzo Herndon: from slavery to three barber shops he couldn't walk through the front door of, to the first Black millionaire in the South, to founding Atlanta Life in 1905 * Why the Friday fish fry became GoFundMe — and why 119 years later we're still having the same conversation * Life insurance as a wealth-building Swiss army knife: how Disney, McDonald's, and Stanford were all funded by life insurance in their early days * The Rockefeller family's secret weapon for dynastic wealth preservation — and why everyone can access the same tool * What it actually takes to evaluate a business for acquisition — and which industries AI is making more valuable, not less * Why 97% of Black-owned businesses are sole proprietorships and what's actually blocking the scale-up Timestamps: * [00:45] Growing up on the South Side — safety inside, perils outside * [03:17] Why philanthropy felt good but not scalable — and the decision to go through business * [06:15] The career arc: Howard, Morgan Stanley, IMB Partners, Bronze Investments, Stanford * [07:09] Meeting Carla Harris in an elevator and what she told him that changed everything * [12:11] How Ryan created an opportunity at Magic Johnson Enterprises with no job posting * [17:04] The Magic Johnson investing thesis — inner cities as overlooked markets with unmet demand * [19:16] How insurance became the unexpected vehicle for everything he'd been trying to do * [21:21] The Alonzo Herndon story — from slavery to the first Black millionaire in the South * [26:16] Why this story isn't taught at Howard — and why that's a disservice * [28:10] Insurance as a social good — how Atlanta Life thinks about the wellness tripod * [31:42] The Friday fish fry to GoFundMe problem — and why the Black community is sleeping on life insurance * [35:37] How to make money as a life insurance agent — the $25 billion opportunity most people overlook * [36:08] Entrepreneurship through acquisition — how to evaluate a business and what questions to ask * [39:50] What's actually blocking Black-owned businesses from scaling * [45:37] What keeps him going — and what winning actually looks like Resources & Links: * Atlanta Life Insurance Company [https://atlantalife.com/] * Atlanta Life Insurance Company: Guardian of Black Economic Dignity [https://www.amazon.com/Atlanta-Life-Insurance-Company-Guardian/dp/0817350454] — the book Ryan referenced, by Alexa Benson Henderson * Magic Johnson Enterprises [https://magicjohnsonenterprises.com/] * Bronze Investments [https://bronzeinvestments.com/] * Kapor Capital [https://kaporcapital.com/] * IMB Development Corporation [https://imbpartners.com/] * Restoring Our Character [https://restoringourcharacter.org/] — Ryan's nonprofit co-founded at Howard * Herndon Home Museum [https://www.herdnhome.org/] — Alonzo Herndon's historic Atlanta home * Principles of Benevolence [https://principlesofbenevolence.com/] Connect with Ryan L. Smith: * LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-l-smith-72080722] * Atlanta Life Insurance on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/atlanta-life-insurance-company]

The Great Ownership Transfer with Shelley Stewart III

What does it actually take to close the wealth gap? Shelley Stewart III didn't set out to become one of the most important thinkers on economic mobility in America. He almost went to law school. Then an SEO internship landed him on a trading floor at JP Morgan, and everything changed. Today he's a Senior Partner at McKinsey, a member of the firm's global leadership team, and the founder and chair of the McKinsey Institute for Economic Mobility — a think tank built on a simple but radical premise: expanding economic opportunity isn't charity, it's strategy. In this conversation we get into all of it — the Great Ownership Transfer, affordable housing, rural America, AI and the workforce, and why Shelley believes the people most responsible for closing these gaps aren't waiting to be told. Key Topics Covered: * From Wall Street to McKinsey — and the career philosophy of building option value without a fixed destination * How a side research project became the McKinsey Institute for Economic Mobility * The Great Ownership Transfer: what happens to $5 trillion in small business value as baby boomers retire — and who gets left out * Why only 28% of that value would flow to women, Black, and Latino individuals under current patterns — and what closing that gap could unlock * Affordable housing: the $3 private capital multiplier and what it means for family offices and impact investors * Rural America and Latino economic mobility — the data most investors aren't looking at * AI adoption inside enterprises: what leaders are actually doing versus what the headlines say * Why Shelley believes McKinsey's highest and best use is staying out of principal investing — and what that means for the firms doing impact investing instead * Advice for early-career professionals who want to build something meaningful from inside a large institution Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction to Principles of Benevolence and Shelly Stewart III 00:45 - Shelley's career path from Wall Street to McKinsey 01:12 - The founding of the McKinsey Institute for Economic Mobility 02:21 - Impact of economic mobility research on policy and industry 03:31 - Shelley's transition to leadership in social impact initiatives 05:07 - Career strategies: navigating without a fixed endpoint 07:16 - The role of research and thought leadership in broad impact 08:50 - Addressing disparities in rural America and Latino communities 10:42 - The importance of collaborative approaches to systemic issues 12:31 - Impact of research on influence and global forums 15:36 - The significance of entrepreneurial ownership transfer 16:31 - Unlocking wealth through family-owned business succession 17:48 - The model of employee ownership and its challenges 20:36 - Closing disparities in health care, housing, and opportunity 23:03 - Fostering the market for business transfers and ownership 24:19 - Trends in wealth transfer, search funds, and next-generation buying 25:51 - The impact of AI and technology on business and workforce 27:29 - Addressing technological displacement and shared ownership models 28:16 - The deployment of AI in enterprise and change management 32:36 - Corporate experimentation and leadership in AI adoption 36:26 - Internal innovations at McKinsey leveraging AI tools 39:32 - Outcomes-based pricing and client engagement models 41:06 - Advice for aspiring intrapreneurs and impact-driven careers 42:26 - Legacy and lasting contributions in social impact 43:26 - Final thoughts and closing remarks Resources & Links: * McKinsey Institute for Economic Mobility [https://www.mckinsey.com/institute-for-economic-mobility/overview] * The Great Ownership Transfer | McKinsey Institute For Economic Mobility [https://www.mckinsey.com/institute-for-economic-mobility/our-insights/the-great-ownership-transfer-a-new-era-of-business-stewardship] * Shelly Stewart III - LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelley-stewart-iii/?skipRedirect=true] * McKinsey & Company [https://www.mckinsey.com/] Connect with Shelly Stewart III: * LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelley-stewart-iii/?skipRedirect=true]

From Incarceration to Liberation with Jonathan Alvarez

3:27 PM div]:bg-bg-000/50 [&_pre>div]:border-0.5 [&_pre>div]:border-border-400 [&_.ignore-pre-bg>div]:bg-transparent [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.standard-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pl-2 [&_.progressive-markdown_:is(p,blockquote,ul,ol,h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6)]:pr-8"> _*]:min-w-0 gap-3 standard-markdown"> From Incarceration to Liberation: Jonathan Alvarez & the Business of Transformation Jonathan Alvarez went into prison at 17 with a 10th grade education. He came home at 30 with a bachelor's degree from Bard College — earned behind bars through the Bard Prison Initiative — and a vision for something he couldn't yet name. Eight years later, he leads 914 United, a nonprofit serving over 8,000 people across Westchester County with an 8% recidivism rate, against a national average of 44 to 66%. But this episode isn't just about redemption. It's about what it takes to build something real — with integrity, intentionality, and the discipline to say no to a $250,000 grant because the infrastructure wasn't ready. Jonathan runs 914 United like a founder, not a charity. And that distinction is everything. In this conversation, we go deep on the internal work that has to happen before anyone walks out of a facility, the real cost of leading a mission-driven organization, and why the most qualified person to solve a problem is usually the one who lived it. Key Topics Covered: * What it felt like to be reborn at 30 after 13 years incarcerated — mentally ready, emotionally still 17 * The 14th Street breakdown: what hitting rock bottom taught him about vulnerability and purpose * Why he chose to own his incarceration as currency rather than hide it * How 914 United grew from a male support group in a park to a million-dollar movement * The funding trap: why letting money drive your mission is the fastest way to lose your identity * What "ceiling time" means — and why reentry starts long before release day * The real cost of this work: outgrown friendships, emotional taxation, and learning to retreat * 8% recidivism — what the data says and what it actually looks like on the ground Timestamps: * [00:36] Purpose of the podcast * [01:04] Jonathan's journey from incarceration to nonprofit founder * [02:21] Mindset and emotional state at reentry * [04:40] The 2019 mental health breakdown and what it taught him * [05:02] Embracing vulnerability and asking for help * [06:07] Owning incarceration as identity and currency * [07:10] The Bard Prison Initiative and the power of education behind bars * [09:11] Vulnerability as a leadership strength * [10:17] Overview of 914 United's mission and programs * [11:07] The moment the movement became bigger than him * [13:38] Turning down a $250K grant — and why intentionality beats opportunity * [15:50] Ethical considerations in prison tech and exploitative practices * [16:45] The broken business model of nonprofits — and how to play by your own rules * [20:52] Ceiling time: the internal work that has to happen before release day * [23:10] The personal cost of mission-driven leadership * [26:28] Behavior change, confidence, and what transformation actually looks like * [27:28] The 8% recidivism rate and what it means * [29:03] Final reflections Relevant Links: * 914 United [https://914united.org/] * Bard Prison Initiative [https://bpi.bard.edu/] * Principles of Benevolence [https://principlesofbenevolence.com/] * Jonathan Alvarez on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-alvarez99/] * 914 United on Instagram [https://instagram.com/914united]